They Say (Temptation Will Destroy Our Love)
by Addicted2Words17
Summary: She is so much more than a villain.
1. Chapter 1

**I know. I probably shouldn't be starting a new story, but I have writer's block with my other one and this idea just wouldn't leave me alone. As always, just borrowing the characters.**

Ashley hates a lot of things about being a superhero.

/

"I count eleven hostages." The petite brunette whispers on her right, a light blue mask preventing her from being identified.

"Where are they?" She forces her any trace of nerves from her voice. This is when she needs to be confident, to be strong. These people are in fear for their lives and it's her job to make them feel safe. The same job that she's had for fifteen years.

"I'll distract the Twins, you get everyone out of there." The plan is solid and doesn't involve direct contact with the perpetrators. The ladder makes her feel like she can breathe freely.

Her other half stands up confidently, revealing herself from their hiding place. On instinct, she reaches out to pull the other girl down.

"Kyla," she whispers. "Be safe." Kyla may be the leader of their duo, but Ashley is her older sister. The urge to protect her has never dampened despite the fact that Kyla's super speed trumps her teleportation in a fight.

"I always am, Big Sis." Wearing a huge grin, Kyla speeds off to meet their nemesis.

The queasy feeling in her stomach doesn't go away, but she pushes it down while she closes her eyes to focus.

/

When she opens her eyes, she's in a room full of frightened faces.

The light blue mask and ridiculously tight spandex keeps her identity hidden. However, the feeling of being exposed is still there. Ashley Davies may be a hero, but she's still her on the inside. She's wondering if these people know of her or if they like her. She wonders if her presence brings any sense of relief.

"Are you one of them?" A guy in the back of the huddled group questions. The cluster of people are inside of the bank vault and she can tell from his name tag that he's the bank manager.

"No, I'm here to help" is all that she offers.

"So, you're one of the good guys?" A little girl in the arms of her mother is the next to speak. Normally, when people ask that question she becomes annoyed, but this little red haired girl reminds her of someone else. So, she keeps her voice gentle and repeats herself.

"I'm here to help."

She reaches for the mother and daughter first. Her powers are limited to two at a time and even that takes a lot out of her. She teleports them to the police waiting outside the bank and doesn't wait before going back for the next group.

The bank manager is the last person left.

His name is Bob which makes sense because all bank managers have generic names. She reaches out for him when a spark of energy comes between them.

"He stays." The command is firm and threatening.

"Damn it, Kyla." She murmurs only loud enough for herself to hear. This is what she wanted to avoid.

Confrontation with the enemy.

She turns slowly and catches ocean eyes through a hazel mask. Even if she didn't turn around, she would know that voice.

"Elektric…"

"Vanish," the feminine blonde counters. Elektric is sitting in a chair at the entrance of the vault and Ashley feels stupid for not noticing her sooner. "I knew you would come here first."

"Seems like you know me well."

Elektric seems to pause at her comment, but then her body tenses.

"Bank manager stays."

She manages a slow head shake to show her disapproval.

"He comes with me. You have the money, you don't need him." It's true, she can tell that there's nothing left in this vault. It makes her wonder why Elektric is still here. This man serves no purpose anymore.

"It's not about the money."

Ashley manages a scoff and gestures to the empty vault around them.

"It sure looks like it's about the fucking money."

There's an answering snort of disappointment as Elektric walks towards them. Ashley attempts to subtly reach for the bank manager's hand, but he's not paying attention. Fear has gripped him and made him useless in his own rescue operation.

"Don't," the blonde warns. She brings her hand up, electricity dancing between her finger tips. It doesn't scare Ashley. In all of the times they've battled, there have been no serious injuries. Occasionally, there will be a split lip or a bruised side, but that's all.

Never anything life threatening.

That is the only reason she reaches out again. The moment she does, there is another shot of electricity. The heat of the spark skims her fingertips, but she pulls back just in time. Another spark shoots out, but she's already disappeared. When she reappears, she's facing the back of a blonde head. She poses herself to strike, but the blonde turns quickly and plants a foot into Ashley's stomach.

She hits the ground hard, fighting has never been her forte. The idea of inflicting pain on anyone, even a criminal, has never been something she could do whole heartedly. What makes her a great hero is also her biggest weakness. Nevertheless, she jumps up and prepares for a battle.

"I was hoping you would make this interesting." Elektric poses herself for a battle that Ashley reluctantly brings.

They trade blow after blow, none of the hits landing due to their knowledge of each other's moves. Elektric's blows are not gentle in the least. They force her back step by step until she is outside of the vault. She faintly hears the whoosh that happens in her sister's wake. Kyla is battling the other half of the Chaos Twins. Pyre's flames catch on the walls nearby barely missing Kyla's dark locks.

The momentary distraction costs her when something hard catches the side of her mouth. She's stunned for a moment, staring at her opponent in disbelief.

For a moment, Elektric freezes.

It doesn't last another second before Ashley lunges after her. She goes for a tackle and they both hit the floor hard. The blonde lets out a groan of pain and Ashley takes that opportunity to pin her. The victory is short lived when pain shoots across her left shoulder. She doesn't have to look to know that it's Pyre's work. The only thing that could draw his attention is the sound of his twin's cry.

"Get the fuck off of her," he yells. It's followed by another shot of fire. The next one misses due to Elektric bucking her off. It doesn't quell his anger though and soon he's releasing an endless blaze.

She takes a breath and reappears behind Pyre. The second her hand touches him, they both disappear. Then next thing she feels is the weight of the water around them. Pyre's sputtering comes from in front of her, but she wastes no time in getting back to Kyla.

She comes back, soaking wet, to see Kyla and Elektric going at it. They don't pull punches and she flinches when Kyla takes a particularly hard hit. Her sister crashes into a nearby chair, Elektric waiting to pounce again.

But this time, Ashley stands in between them.

The blonde stares at her curiously, taking in her soggy appearance. This is immediately followed by searching eyes.

"Redondo Beach" is all Ashley offers.

Elektric's eyes darken and she looks back towards the vault. An internal battle going on behind her blue eyes.

"You can't get to them both," she adds.

That makes Elektric's decision for her and she's gone the moment Ashley's eyes are off of her.

"Damn it. One day I'll kick that bitch's ass." Kyla's coughing as Ashley helps her up.

"Yeah, we all know you're a badass." They both share a laugh, all of the previous tension gone. "We should go. The police will be in soon and those conversations always make me uncomfortable."

/

She hates the press.

/

"_This city owes a great deal to Vanish and Swift. Thanks to them, the Chaos Twins were unable to ruin anymore lives. I'm sure between our heroes and law enforcement, we will be able to put those animals down. Once and for all_." The audience claps at the mayor's proclamation and dozens of reporters hands go up.

"Wow. She really wants those twins dead," Kyla comments. They went back to Kyla's house to nurse their wounds. The news update interrupting their routine of watching trashy MTV shows.

"_Madam Mayor, are you saying that you want these villains dead?" An unknown reporter prompts._

"_I'm saying, the only good villain is a dead villain," she states firmly._

"Harsh," Kyla comments. "I hate villains too, but death seems a bit much."

This entire time, she's felt a tightness in her chest. She's not a killer, she could never be and she knows this will become an issue soon enough.

But it's something that Ashley will **never **budge on.

"If she wants them dead, it won't be us that does it." There is a hint of defensiveness in her tone and Kyla must sense it because she just nods.

"I know that, Sis. I would never."

The tightness loosens slightly and she allows Kyla to pull her closer. She leans on her younger sister, a sense of comfort coming over her. Kyla and her share the same beliefs. It's the reason she trusts her sister when she says they will never be killers.

"Thank you," she croaks.

/

But what she hates the most about being a hero?

/

It's a little past eight when she gets home.

She opens the front door and hears a series of giggles. The tightness has completely disappeared and suddenly she's content. Ashley doesn't bother to find a place to drop her bag. It hits the floor and she follows the laughter into the living room.

She's greeted with the image of two tiny children jumping off of the couch. Blonde hair flying with the short flight. A boy and a girl who are perfect images of each other.

Two of the biggest pieces of her heart.

The boy turns and his smile grows larger at the sight of Ashley. The excitement is clear on his face and he turns to propel himself off the back of the couch. He jumps without fear and Ashley moves forward to grab him, but another pair of hands catches the daredevil.

"A little to bold there, kiddo." The voice is much softer than it was earlier. No more hazel mask hiding her beautiful face. This is the version of her that fills Ashley's heart with happiness.

Spencer Davies is the love of her life. She's the mother of her amazing children. Spencer is the glue that keeps this family together.

She is so much more than a villain.

"He gets that from you, you know?" She leans in and Spencer meets her halfway. Their son in between them as a share a chaste kiss. Later on, she'll murmur apologies into her pale skin. Promises to go easier, to be softer and Spencer will accept none of them. She will demand that they keep that part of their lives separate.

She will force them to keep Vanish and Elektric out of their personal lives. At home, they will always be Spencer and Ashley. College sweethearts. Mothers to Lily and Logan, the sweetest six year olds in the world. Two people who will always choose each other no matter the circumstance.

"If I recall, you used to love my impulsiveness," her wife responds coyly. Logan squirms between them, a complaint about wanting to be free soon follows. Spencer gently lets their son down and he barrels over to his sister to ask if she saw his short flight. "Hey guys, go get ready for bed and me and mama will read you a bedtime story."

"Logan chose last time, so I want it's my turn!" Lily's voice is unnecessarily loud, one of the things they've talked to her about.

"You just keep picking the same book. _Love You Forever. _We've read it a million times," Logan complains.

"And we've read _Where the Wild Things Are _just as much. Stop complaining and go get ready like your mother said." Ashley's voice leaves no room for discussion and their son grumbles his way upstairs.

"It's so sexy when you co-parent," Spencer jokes. The blonde grips Ashley's waist and pulls her in close, their children safely away. This time Spencer pulls her in for a more passionate kiss. They mutually sigh at the feeling of each other's lips. Ashley's tongue searching out more of her wife's taste. She feels her wife attempt to pull away, but she grunts her dissatisfaction before recapturing her lips. "Ash… baby," Spencer breathes in between kisses. "The kids are going to be ready soon."

She feels her wife's hands slide up her body and she can't help flinching once it makes contact with her burned shoulder. Spencer's head pulls way sharply. The blonde's eyes scan her body, worrying her lip between her teeth the entire time.

This is when things are hard.

When one of them is hurt and the other has to pretend to not know the source. She knows how sorry Spencer is even if her wife wasn't the one that did it. The fact that they keep this secret from Glen, Spencer's other half, puts Ashley in danger. Glen who knows that Ashley would never lay a hand on his sister, but thinks Vanish would kill her.

"I'm…" Spencer barely catches herself from breaking their rules. The croak in her voice more apologetic than anything else she could offer.

"I love you." She offers what Spencer needs, assurance that no matter what happens their love will overcome everything. It's enough. Spencer nods her head and wraps her arms around Ashley's neck.

"I love you… so much," Spencer enunciates each word. A passionate plea for them to be okay no matter what the world brings.

"Let's go put our kids to bed."

/

"I'll love you forever. I'll like you for always. As long as I'm living, my baby you'll be…" It's Spencer's turn to read tonight.

Ashley tries to scoot closer on the bed, a difficult feet on a twin bed. Logan is perched on her lap, his head resting against her chest. For all of his complaining, he is completely silent. Lily is between her and Spencer, her wild blonde hair spread all over Spencer.

"Mommy," Lily interrupts. Spencer stops and glances down at their daughter. "How long will you love me and Logan?" The small girl yawns during her question. She asks this question every time they read this book. A silent plea to hear what she knows is true.

"Forever," her wife answers without hesitation.

"Me too," Ashley adds while hugging Logan tighter. The small boy grumbles, but holds on tighter to his mother's shirt.

"How long will you love Mommy?" The six year old looks between her mothers with wide eyes.

"For always." Spencer directs her words at Ashley and the brunette finds it hard to breathe. It's been fourteen years and Spencer's love still feels like opening presents on Christmas.

"For always," she reiterates. It's enough to satisfy their daughter and Spencer because her wife continues reading.

/

"Spencer…"

"No, you know the rules." Spencer's naked body pulls away from her with a sigh. Ashley knows this is the wrong time, but she has so many questions about today. So many questions about why Spencer took money.

"Am I not providing enough?"

"Ashley-"

"-I thought we were okay. I mean we're not rich, but we've never wanted for anything."

"-Ashley."

"I can talk to my boss about a raise. I'm due for one and then we can-"

"-Damn it, Ashley. Stop!" Spencer's volume stops her from saying more. The kids are finally asleep and Spencer is usually the first to say not to wake them. "We aren't doing this." Spencer sits up and runs her hand through her hair. "We can't do this," her wife pleads. There are tears building in her eyes and Ashley suddenly feels like an asshole.

Spencer is right. Ashley is out of line.

"Spencer," she coos. She reaches out to caress Spencer's bare thigh and sighs in relief when the blonde doesn't move away. "I'm sorry."

Spencer turns to face her, tears no longer kept at bay. Each tear pokes a hole into Ashley's lungs and the brunette slides even closer to her wife. Spencer hates crying and her irritation at her tears shows.

"Just… don't." Spencer pulls away from Ashley's touch completely, She turns over and pretends to sleep. Ashley's cue that the conversation is over.

/

She hates knowing that one wrong move could cost her the most important things in her life.


	2. Chapter 2

_ **Hey all, I know, I'm late. Things have been crazy and I haven't been able to write, but lately I've been feeling okay so I was able to give you what's 15 pages according to Word. I have the next chapter ready to go, it just needs some tweaking and love. This chapter is for anyone who's still hanging in there with me. Thank you. Let me know what you think.**_

_Freshman Year (Spring)_

It starts with Open Mic.

She shows up two hours early determined with a slightly battered guitar. She chooses to sit at the table that's closest to where they set up the stage. Her younger sister, Kyla, who she has banned from coming tonight, suggested that it might help with her stage freight. Attention is not something that Ashley Davies thrives in, regardless of who her parents are… _were_. But her parents are the reason that she's attempted this for the last six weeks. Her parents, who aren't around anymore to do things as trivial as open mic night even though they favored karaoke.

She has to do this for them. She's done letting them down.

She places the guitar on her lap and begins to tune it. It's old, the same one her father played in college, but it was his favorite. Now it's hers.

"I think tonight's the night," an unexpected voice says from nearby. She's unsure if the voice is speaking to her, but she looks up regardless. It's then that she locks on ocean eyes. A blonde waitress in a black crop top that represents the bar tilts her head to the side. The blonde's face is unguarded, the intrigue clear as day on her face.

Ashley would love to say something… anything to this beautiful girl, but apparently she goes mute around beautiful girls. She's sure she must look ridiculous. Ashley can taste the staleness in the air which makes her realize that her mouth must be open. Great.

"My mom used to say that's how you catch flies." The confusion must be evident on Ashley's face because the blonde gestures to her own lips. The signal works because soon the brunette is closing her mouth. "Ashley Davies, tell me something… am I free next Friday?"

"W-what? I-I don't… how would I know?" The stutter is new… even to her. She's sure her cheeks are red hot from embarrassment. It's only a moment later when a thought comes to her. "How do you know my name?"

The mysterious blonde gives her the most devious smile she's ever seen. The blonde's eyes dance with secrets that Ashley desperately wants to know.

"You've been signing up for over a month and I admit that I checked for your name today." The mystery girl goes back to wiping tables, moving effortlessly around the room. "After all, I've been betting on you. Hence the question. Will I be sacrificing another Friday night for you?" She tosses a wink in Ashley's direction and it feels like thunderbolts on the brunette's skin.

"You've bet on me?" The girl merely nods in response, eyes back to focusing on wiping down the tables. She gracefully moves from table to table until she's wiping the one next to Ashley.

"What did you bet?"

"It's funny that you asked." The girl finally stops her task and moves to take a seat at Ashley's table. "You see, after your first disappearing act, I just knew you were going to get it right the second time. So much so, that I bet my coworkers that your voice would be just as beautiful as you are." The slight compliment is not missed by Ashley, who fights down another blush. "I offered to cover any shift they wanted if I was wrong, but then you left again. So, they decided I lost by default. Then, I made the same bet again and again and now here we are."

"Why did you keep betting on me?" Ashley's not a gambler. If she were in this girl's shoes, she would have cut her losses.

"I know a winning hand when I see it." The blonde crosses her jean clad legs in a way that's unfairly sexy. She props her elbow on the table and leans her head onto her open palm.

She's forced to tighten her grip on her guitar to keep from doing something stupid like touching this very intriguing waitress. The silence stretches between them until Ashley speaks again.

"My parents are dead." The first time she said that phrase was after Detective Dennison stated it. Aiden Dennison was the only one who knew her parents' true identity. When the burning building Purple Venom was saving people from collapsed, Aiden was the only one who knew that it was really Raife and Christine Davies who perished. She had never seen the detective cry before and it took her repeating the phrase to believe any part of it.

"That fucking sucks." She doesn't mean to snort out a laugh at the blonde's response, but it's the first time she's heard such a different response. The blonde's eyes don't change so the pity Ashley's expecting never comes.

"Before they would go… to work," she covers lamely. "My dad would sing this song. So, we would know he would always come back from wherever he was."

_I will always come back to you and your sister, Houdini. Wild horses, kiddo, Wild horses. _

"Every night he would have to be apart from us. Even when we got too cool for it, got too old. He would make us hear this song… make us listen to his love for us." She swallows hard, forcing her sadness down deep into the pit of her stomach. "I haven't heard that song in four months and it's just made it harder to breathe… to sleep." It's true, she feels like she hasn't slept in weeks. She's tried everything until six weeks ago Kyla, her sister, pointed out that it's been hard to sleep without their dad's song. " It's why I started coming here. It's why I'm here now."

"So, the song is for them or you?"

"Both."

"Can I hear it?" The blonde questions. She's somehow moved closer and Ashley can smell her perfume. It's sweet, but warm. "After all, I haven't seen a weekend night in a long time because of my commitment to you," she jokes.

She shouldn't be surprised at the request. This is a girl who has probably sacrificed sleep and a social life for her. Of course, she'd want to hear Ashley sing. Ashley observes this girl, tries to see if there is any reason to deny the request, but she can't find any. There is no one else here except them and at least this way she can say she passed on a bit of her dad to one other person. Kept his legacy alive.

This girl seems to sense her agreement because she leans back into her chair and watches patiently.

Well shit… now she's nervous.

She focuses on the chords, on the memories of her father's strong fingers moving so flawlessly over his beloved strings. She doesn't look up at her audience. This mysterious blonde has a way of staring at Ashley in a way that a key would a lock. It makes Ashley want to drop all of her barriers and just let the floodgate of emotions free.

"_Childhood living  
Is easy to do  
The things you wanted  
I bought them for you."_

As she's singing, she can see him so clearly. Bleached dyed ringlets hanging from his face as he watched her in adoration.

"_Graceless lady  
You know who I am  
You know I can't let you  
Slide through my hands  
Wild horses  
Couldn't drag me away  
Wild, wild horses  
Couldn't drag me away."_

She's unable to prevent the tears that cascade down her cheek, spilling onto the neck of her father's guitar. She knows the song won't sound very good soon as the tension in her throat grows. She keeps going though, for him.

"_**I've watched you suffer  
A dull aching pain  
Now, you decided  
To show me the same  
**__**No sweeping exits  
**__**Or offstage lines  
**__**Could make me feel bitter  
**__**Or treat you unkind."**_

She doesn't expect the blonde's gentle voice to join in, but she's grateful for it. The burden of the song forcing her to focus purely on her own movements across the fret. If this girl has a problem taking over, she doesn't voice it. She continues to sing while Ashley wonders how her father was able to do this for her every night.

"_Rolling Stones are pure gold, Houdini. I could sing this song forever. I could sing to you and your sister forever." _

She believed it too. The way he sang it, she believed every line out of his mouth. The thought causes her to slip mid strum and it comes out wonky, but the mystery girl doesn't stop singing. By the time Ashley joins in, the song is almost over.

"_**Faith has been broken  
Tears must be cried  
Let's do some living  
After we die."**_

The blonde just smiles warmly through the words and soon they're singing the final lines together.

"_Wild horses couldn't drag me away_

_Wild, wild horses we'll ride them someday."_

The song ends andAshley's guitar echoes in the quiet room. The mystery girl begins to clap with the broadest smile Ashley's ever seen on her face.

"I just knew you had a beautiful voice, Ashley Davies."

/

Spencer Carlin is the most interesting girl she's ever met.

She curses a lot, even at inanimate objects. She sleeps all day long and treats 5pm like it's 5am. Spencer will say good morning by 6pm and goodnight at 7am. They don't share any classes due to the fact that Spencer only takes night classes and she's a computer science major. Spencer goes grocery shopping at midnight and she'll drag Ashley along too. She lives in an off campus apartment that's swankier than anything that Ashley's ever stayed in. She's a night owl so all of her classes start after 7pm.

All night, Ashley will receive random texts complaining about class or begging her to come over or pictures of people she's never seen before. Spencer is peculiar in a way which draws her in entirely.

And then there's the sparks.

They will be in the middle of the hottest makeout session Ashley's had the pleasure of being a part of and it will feel like hot lava inside of her blood. There are sparks, honest to god, sparks. Spencer tells her she's being ridiculous, but one time they got hot and heavy with Spencer on the kitchen counter and the power in the kitchen went out at the exact moment Spencer came.

Shit was crazy.

"_Don't be ridiculous, it's probably just the breaker," her girlfriend sighed when Ashley brought it up after round three. _

"_Just the kitchen, Spence? I'm telling you. It's something else."_

Spencer then went down on her to shut her up so it's safe to say that discussion went nowhere.

But regardless, Spencer is without a doubt the best thing to ever happen to her. It's only been three months, but Ashley is positive that she loves Spencer.

But she knows that Spencer has secrets.

There are mysterious bruises and late-night phone calls that has her girlfriend leaving no matter the circumstances. Spencer is a computer science major, but doesn't own a computer. She does all of her assignments on an iPad that Ashley's sure doesn't have the software. Then, there's the fact that Spencer's class schedule doesn't seem to be consistent. Spencer tells Ashley not to worry whenever Ashley says she'll walk her to class. Spencer tries to make it subtle, but the suggestion is firmly turned down every time.

Spencer's hiding something.

She can feel it sometimes, how much it hurts Spencer to keep her secrets. It's always a lip bite and a look of indecision with each phone call. Whatever Spencer is keeping from her is hurting her.

So, Ashley does everything in her power to ease her love's pain.

Spencer cancels dinner reservations? No big deal. In a single blink, Ashley is home in bed. Mysterious bruises? Ashley kisses them before taking care of them. She tells Spencer a ridiculous antidote so her girlfriend doesn't wonder if she's mad. The phone rings in the middle of their makeout session? She kisses her extra hard and makes dirty promises for the next time.

These compromises are easy. There is nothing she wouldn't compromise for Spencer… which makes it harder to keep her powers hidden away. Spencer will talk about going to Greece and Ashley wants to just whisk her away. Spencer leaves twenty minutes early for work and Ashley wants to tell her she only needs one. Then, there is the fact that Ashley just **knows **that telling her secret will help Spencer feel comfortable unburdening hers too.

But how do you tell your girlfriend that you have the ability to go anywhere with the blink of an eye?

"I should get going," Spencer attempts to pull out of Ashley's hold. They've been cuddled up in Ashley's dorm room watching Twilight Zone reruns. Ashley just tightens her hold in response.

"Or… here's a crazy idea…" She turns them so girlfriend is beneath her, long blonde hair splayed out across her pillow. "You can stay and I can make good on some promises."

Ten different emotions flash across Spencer's face before she settles into a smirk. Spencer's fingers trail up Ashley's bare arms before sliding into the hole of her sleeveless shirt. Ashley shivers involuntarily at her girlfriend's nails lightly scratching down her back. If this was a month ago, Ashley would think this was a surrender, but she knows her girlfriend well enough. Spencer always touches her best before she leaves.

"I have class" her girlfriend offers apologetically.

"So, skip, you barely go as is. Plus, I have a laptop. You can work from here,"

"Ashley."

"Spencer." She replies with a little more aggression than planned. It throws them both off and she's unexpectedly tossed to the side of the bed. Spencer jumps up without apology and starts to gather her things. "Spence… babe… you know I understand-"

"-No, you pretend to understand." Spencer begins zooming around the room and it takes Ashley to register that she's gathering all of her belongings from Ashley's dorm room.

"What are you doing?" She jumps up too and attempts to get in between Spencer and her dresser, stopping the blonde from taking anything else out of her drawer.

"Spencer, what the fuck?"

The fury that greets her when Spencer spares her a glance is shocking to say the least. They've never fought. She's made sure of it. She's gone out of her way to make sure Spencer doesn't look at her in the way she is now.

"I'm taking my stuff. I knew this couldn't work. This was stupid."

There is so much to unpack in that sentence that Ashley doesn't know where to start.

"What's stupid? Us? Because if that's where you're going with this then you're stupid." Okay, so she could have come up with something better, but at least it causes some of the heat to leave Spencer's features.

"I'm stupid?"

"Yes." She decides resolutely.

"You have to know that's not the best way to get a girl to stay." The quirk of the blonde's eyebrow tells Ashley that she just bought some time. "I mean, you must have seen enough movies to come up with something better than that."

"You're being stupid so I called it like I saw it." She feels some unexpected confidence. "Spencer, babe, I have been so damn understanding and I'm not saying that to win some girlfriend of the year award. I'm saying that because if you would have honestly said you can't stay, I would have said okay. I always say okay."

"I know," her girlfriend confirms guiltily.

"So, what the fuck? You don't get to try to take off and end things when I'm being a wonderful girlfriend." She's trying really hard to be pissed, but the crack of smile from Spencer is easily melting any anger away.

"Toot your own horn much?" The sparkle is back in her girlfriend's eyes so she takes that as a cue to unpack Spencer's stuff.

"There are very few instances in this relationship when I'm right so I have to take advantage when I can." She folds all of her girlfriend's things and puts them back neatly in their place. Spencer watches, but says nothing. Once she's settled Spencer back into her life, she takes her girlfriend's hands and pulls her back to the bed.

"Sometimes, I think you're going to get sick of this…. Of me and my secrets." Spencer's grip on her hand tightens. "I am so scared of losing you. I usually do what I do and I never have to think about anyone, but I can't stop thinking about you. I know it's dramatic, but if you left me… fuck Ashley… I would burn this world to the ground. I just love you so much and I-"

"-I LOVE YOU TOO!" Her volume scares both of them and Spencer just shakes her head with a small smile. "I'm sorry. I've just been holding that in for a while. I didn't want to miss my moment."

A look of disbelief crosses Spencer's features and another flood of embarrassment hits Ashley. "Ashley Davies, I already know you love me. You talk in your sleep."

This does nothing to tamper her embarrassment.

"I hope you didn't think you were keeping that secret. Plus, I didn't get into this relationship to not fall in love with you. A future with you has always been in my cards." Spencer gently pushes Ashley until the brunette flops onto the bed. "I'm sorry I tried to throw that away."

"I wouldn't have let you." Spencer climbs on top of her, straddling her in a way that causes heat to build in her stomach.

"Let me, huh?" The teasing in her voice lets Ashley know she is joking.

"I didn't get into this to **not **spend the rest of my life with you," she jokes in return. "God, Spence, all that time spent before you? I never want another moment without you in my life."

"Is it inappropriate that what you just said made me incredibly wet?"

She's sure her cheeks are a deep red from her girlfriend's comment. Spencer has never been shy about her physical reactions to Ashley. The blonde is bold in her desires and Ashley isn't surprised when her girlfriend slides Ashley's hand into her panties to provide evidence for her statement.

"You're going to be the death of me, Spencer Carlin." She whispers in the space between them. They mutually lean in, Spencer's lips so close.

"God, I hope so," Spencer breathes before closing the distance between them.

So, yeah… she's in love.


End file.
